Dental Implants FAQ's
Generally speaking, if a person is well enough to undergo the treatment necessary for fixed bridgework or routine tooth extractions, the same patient can undergo dental implant procedures. Some patients may have general health conditions which may complicate procedures, although this is unlikely. The best form of implant for you is determined after a thorough examination. The amount and location of available bone determines whether you are a good implant candidiate.
The body completely accepts placement of dental implant material within bone; therefore, todays dental implants have great success. However, success has more to do with proper patient selection, proficiency and experience of the dentist, and the patients commitment to proper hygiene and ongoing maintenance.
They should last a lifetime. However, no one can give guarantees because the health of the implants is completely out of control of the dentist. Provided you look after them and choose a good quality of dentist, this will tip the scales in your favour.
Absolutely not! Dental implants have a long history of use and success. They are the most thoroughly researched treatment in the history of dentistry and, while no procedure is 100% successful, the current technology has resulted in very high success rates in the hands of well trained and experienced clinicians.
Whether or not the implant can be placed immediately after extraction depends on the amount of available bone in the area, and the presence or absence of infection.
Treat dental implants as natural teeth and look after them that way. return for regular checkups, brush and floss. Realise also that caring for the gums is the best way to care for your teeth. More teeth are lost as a result of gum disease than any other scene.
Implant placement doesn’t usually result in much post-op pain or discomfort. usually the patient takes paracetamol or ibuprofen for a couple of days. If more extensive treatment, such as bone grafts, is needed, then the post-op course may require more time and medication.
You’ll need to follow a modified, soft diet for the first few weeks.
The procedure can be a significant investment, with surgical fees ranging from £2500+ for a single tooth replacement (the cost is about the same as a conventional ‘3 tooth bridge’) and from £5000+ for replacement of multiple missing teeth. However, the cost of non-treatment can be much more expensive in the long run.
In most cases, the pressure of dentures or partials causes gums to get ‘flabby’ and bone shrinks over time. When this occurs, the dentures usually become loose and awkward, even when adhesives are applied. Much like when one loses weight, and this causes more bone loss and gum problems.
Under current GDC guidelines, yes. But, with any medical or dental procedure, not all practitioners have equal training or experience with dental implant treatment.
